I Hear Your Silence
by KeiChanz
Summary: Her silence spoke louder than any words ever could.


This oneshot took over my life, but in the end, it was so totally worth it because I am so ridiculously happy with how it turned out. ^_^

So like a small eternity ago, my love and mistress **Grapefruitwannabe** gave me a prompt with something along the lines of how Inuyasha reacts to innocent/subtle touches from Kagome. I think this oneshot accurately depicts that, and it delves a little deeper into their relationship as well. This is also for my wife **PureKagobae** and my girlfraaaaaan **Inunanna**. Because they are amazing and I love them and they are my tumblr family and just. *so many hearts* They motivate me and encourage me and I don't think they now just how much they mean to me.

So! Let me know which scenario is your favorite! For me, it's a tie between "peaches" and "brownie batter." xD

Okay. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy the _twelve_ pages of fluff that is called

 **I Hear Your Silence**

It was a bright sunny day in Feudal Japan and the group of shard hunters were trouping through a heavily wooded area, however their self-proclaimed leader had discovered (actually it was more like sniffed out because of the scent foot traffic he'd detected) a dirt path that was reasonably unobstructed so they were able to maneuver through the trees with relative ease. There was no sense of urgency since they weren't following a rumor, their pace was leisurely, and there were no foul scents or dark feelings that something was amiss.

With Inuyasha trudging on ahead of them all, Miroku and Sango were a few steps behind them, with Kirara perched on the woman's shoulder, while Kagome and Shippou brought up the rear, chatting quietly about nothing in particular, admiring the scenery, and harboring a secret bargain amongst themselves about when the monk of their group would shatter the peace by grabbing a certain slayer's butt.

In the end, neither of them won that particular bet because it wasn't Miroku who disturbed the quiet.

"Uh, Kagome…?" Shippou interrupted their discussion about type of pocky to ask hesitantly from his comfortable place in her arms.

"Hm?" Blinking, Kagome glanced down at the kitsune in her arms, wondering at his sudden change in demeanor. "What is it, Shippou?"

The fox tyke was staring at her shoulder apprehensively. "Um, what's that?"

Kagome stared at him a few seconds longer in confusion then followed his gaze and Shippou watched in fascination as the color drained from her face.

"Inuyasha!"

A silver ear flicked once and golden eyes glanced down to regard the kitsune clinging to his arm with a mildly annoyed frown. "What, runt?"

Biting his lip, Shippou pointed and curiously Inuyasha's gaze followed. "I think Kagome's broken."

Standing stock still, face white as a ghost and her body trembling, Kagome's eyes were wide with fright as they locked with his own and both his eyebrows shot up into his bangs in surprise. What the—

Kagome's face was screwed up in a mixture of disgust and horror and Inuyasha knew for a fact that if she hadn't been paralyzed by fear, she'd be calling his name in that pleading, whining tone she often used when she wanted something. Looking like she was about a second away from bursting into hysterical tears, she canted her head as far away as she could from her left shoulder where a very large, very hairy, and very ugly spider nonchalantly clung to her shirt.

Releasing a snort, Inuyasha shook his head and brushed past the two amused humans to go and save his wench from the big bad bug. "It's just a spider, Kagome," he said as he approached her and Kagome made an unintelligible sound in the back of her throat. She latched onto his haori with her hand and whined again. "Calm down, wench. It ain't gonna eat ya," Inuyasha stated with some exasperation as reached out toward her shoulder with one hand and coolly coaxed the insect into his palm with the other before setting it on a nearby tree in which it hurriedly skittered away.

Immediately Kagome released the breath she'd been holding and slumped against the half-demon, resting her forehead on his shoulder as she flapped her hands in the air and did a little "ew ew ew _gross_ " dance. Then she paused and tilted her face up to regard him with a sheepish but genuine smile, gratitude shining in those cinnamon eyes of hers.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, snorted again and promptly marched back to the front of their group, shaking his head and grumbling about weak little human girls.

A minute later Kagome appeared by his arm, chocolate brown eyes darting left, right, up and down for any other hairy surprises and Inuyasha suppressed a grin because he couldn't help but notice she was sticking quite close to him.

Not that he minded.

 **-X-**

Growling in aggravation, face screwed up in an annoyed scowl, Kagome wiggled around on the ground, twisting this way and that as she desperately tried to get the damned cap off of the pickle jar. For some strange reason Shippou was addicted to the things and of course she couldn't say whenever he asked for some. Unfortunately, her fox kit might not be able to get his tart treat because apparently the manufacturers made it so it was damned near impossible to get the stupid lid off. Dammit, why the hell was this on so tight?!

With an unlady-like grunt of effort, Kagome put her weight into twisting the cap off, hunching her shoulders, unaware of the quite amused looks on her companions' faces as she attempted to open the jar. She shifted her weight again, ended up throwing off her balance and promptly flopped backward quite ungracefully and with an undignified squawk.

The stupid lid wasn't even _loose._

Pouting now, still lying on the ground and glaring at the glass in her hands, Kagome didn't hear the heavy sigh and wasn't aware that her half-demon had stood up from his location against the tree until a shadow was cast over her and she blinked up at the silver-haired figure towering over her, arms crossed, single brow raised and his expression clearly saying "really?" Kagome blinked again, then smiled cheekily and Inuyasha shook his head with another sigh before extending a hand and wiggling his fingers meaningfully.

Her smile widened and Kagome sat up before handing over the troublesome jar of pickles. Wordlessly and with no effort at all Inuyasha twisted off the cap with a flick of his wrist and handed it back to his wench, expression deadpan.

Kagome giggled, popped up to her feet and leaned in to land a swift kiss of thanks to his cheek before taking the jar and fishing for a pickle to give to the cheering Shippou.

She missed the softening of his expression and one corner of his lips twitching up into small half-grin.

 **-X-**

Kagome shifted and tried to find a more comfortable position on her sleeping bag for what seemed like the nth time that night as she studied her history text by firelight, grunting softly to herself in annoyance. Five minutes later she shifted again, rolling onto her stomach with her book on the ground and her chin propped in her hands. Another few minute passed and she was moving around once more, this time onto her back and holding her textbook above her.

She growled. No, that didn't work either. She needed a pillow or something to prop her head up…

An idea formed in her head and caramel eyes slid across the campsite toward the red clad figure sitting cross-legged against a tree, arms folded and eyes closed but she knew he wasn't sleeping. Her gaze narrowed. Hmm…

Something landed on his thigh and Inuyasha popped his eyes open to stare down at the dark head of hair currently using his leg as a pillow.

He raised a brow at her. "And just what do you think you're doing?"

Brown eyes gazed up at him innocently and she simply smiled up at him in answer.

Inuyasha snorted and rolled his eyes, muttering a soft "Keh," but otherwise made no further protests and Kagome happily went back to studying her textbook as she held it aloft, feeling much more comfortable now that she had her desired pillow. Said pillow shifted, and a moment later clawed fingers languidly combed through her hair. Kagome sighed, smiled, and decided she'd found her permanent studying position.

 **-X-**

Morning came way too early for the dark-haired girl from the future and she groaned, rolling over in her sleeping bag and burrowing in deeper, tugging the flap over her head to hide from the sun's rays filtering in through the trees. She heard a snort then something nudged her side through the bag. Kagome grunted and squirmed around in protest.

A sigh then annoyed grumbling. "Get up, wench. We need to get moving, we're burning daylight."

"Mmnnghh." The Kagome-shaped lump wriggled once, then stilled.

Inuyasha frowned and a bit of impatience leaked into his voice. "Kagome. Quit lazing around and get up. We're all waiting for your ass."

Giving an exaggerated groan, Kagome lowered the cover just enough to reveal her eyes and glare at her tormenter drowsily. Inuyasha remained stone-faced and merely cocked a brow at her. Grumbling under her breath, the dark-haired girl gave in with a defeated – and perhaps just a tad overdramatic – sigh and finally shoved down the covers, taking a moment to stretch languorously.

A soft grunt reached her ears and something poked her stomach that time. Kagome giggled and cracked an eye to gaze up at her wake up call who gazed unwaveringly down at her with a slight scowl, but Kagome knew he wasn't truly irritated. Which was why all she did was smile brightly up at him then wordlessly held her hands up, her face adorably expectant.

Inuyasha narrowed his gaze, Kagome blinked innocently, and then with a heavy sigh and a roll of his eyes, he reached down, grabbed her hands then hoisted her up to her feet. Kagome released a squeak of delight, giggled again and swiftly leaned up to peck his cheek. Just as it always did whenever she greeted him with a good morning kiss, Inuyasha's face softened and he gave a soft "keh" in response.

Even with a soft shade of pink on her cheeks, Kagome's smile never faded as she rolled up her sleeping bag, stuffed it in her yellow pack and would have slung it over her shoulder had Inuyasha not snatched it from her and shouldered it himself.

Five minutes later the group of shard hunters were off, Inuyasha and Kagome in the front, and when Kagome sneakily slipped her hand into his beneath the voluminous sleeve of his robe, he ducked his head to hide his pleased grin as he laced his fingers with hers and squeezed.

She squeezed back.

 **-X-**

It was just after noon and much to Kagome's delight, Inuyasha had managed to sniff out a large, healthy peach tree bearing a copious amount of the fuzz-covered fruit by the edge of a large meadow (thankfully none of them wore a face), and so they settled beneath the shade provided by it and a lunch of instant noodles, dried boar meat, and some iced tea, courtesy of Kagome after having Miroku frequently request she bring back more from her time. The only thing that Kagome just knew would make their lunch complete was some of the yummy looking fruit hanging above their heads, just waiting to he picked and consumed.

If only they weren't so high up and out of her reach.

Reclining against the large trunk, hands behind his head and ankle casually propped on his knee, Inuyasha used this downtime to take a rare moment to relax, to close his eyes and blank his mind, just feel the light breeze on his face, the sounds of his friends chatting, the fresh scent of the pine and the pleasant aroma of the peaches hanging above his head, and the increasingly frustrated sounds of coming from his wench on the other side of the tree.

A frown knitted his brow and he swiveled his ears toward the young woman from the future. The hell was she doing? A particularly annoyed growl echoed back to him and deciding he'd better go and see what she was up to this time before she went and did something stupid, Inuyasha heaved a sigh and reluctantly pushed himself to his feet. He rounded the trunk and he was met with the sight of his wench attempting to jump high enough and snatch one of the lower hanging peaches that looked to be _just_ out of her reach. Unsuccessfully, he might add.

Amused despite himself, Inuyasha crossed his arms and silently watched as Kagome jumped up again, madly swinging her arm and her fingertips managed to brush against the fuzzy fruit before she dropped back down. She huffed in irritation, bent her knees and bounced again, either ignoring or unaware of her entertained audience.

This went on for several more minutes, Kagome trying unsuccessfully to grab that one damn peach that was just out of her reach and Inuyasha standing silently by watching with much interest before finally he decided to (take pity on) help the girl out. Wordlessly he walked up behind her, laid a hand on her waist to stall her useless bouncing and then reached up and easily plucked the desired fruit from the branch. Kagome made a sound of pleasure as he brought it down and presented it before her.

Pleased as punch and with a brilliant smile, Kagome took the sweet smelling fruit with both hands and leaned back against him slightly, turning her head so she could gaze up at him and bestow a light thank-you kiss to his jaw. Inuyasha hummed in the back of his throat and certain they were hidden from their friends by the thick trunk, he returned the gesture with a nuzzle to her cheek.

He reveled in her gentle blush and the way her eyes flashed with an emotion he knew was reflected in his own.

 **-X-**

Coming into early evening, the weather had suddenly taken a turn for the worse, going from warm and sunny, to unusually cold and blustery for it being in the middle of summer. Unanimously deciding that it'd probably be best to seek shelter for the rest of the night and continue their quest come morning, the Inuyasha troop trudged their way through the impromptu windstorm in which Kagome stuck close behind the hanyou, using him as a shield from the wind and cold. She clung to his haori, head ducked against his back to protect her face, trusting him to guide them to safety. The firm warmth of his hand at her hip was a solid reassurance, knowing that it was as much as for him as it was for her, and she was totally grateful that he had wordlessly taken it upon himself to take the brunt of the squalls pushing against them. Keeping one hand fisted in his fire-rat, she let him know of her gratitude by placing her hand on his own at her hip and hanging on. She felt him tighten his grasp on her hip and she knew he knew.

What seemed like a small eternity later, but in reality was only about ten minutes, they stumbled upon a naturally made sanctuary in the form of a nook nestled in the rock face of a steep cliff. Upon further investigation, it was deep and large enough to avoid the blistering winds swooping in through the mouth and they were easily able to keep a fire burning with no concern of it blowing out.

So now with their stomachs full with an early dinner and nothing to do now but wait out the storm until morning, Kagome sat huddled before the fire wrapped in her sleeping bag, shivering despite the cozy warmth of their campsite and pouting miserably. Her friends didn't seem to have a problem getting warm again after being succumbed to the cold gales outside but for some reason, Kagome wouldn't retain any of the warmth gleaned from the fire or her downy sleeping bag. Shippou was no help; he was passed out, snuggled up with Kirara on the other side of the fire, and if Kagome happened to send them envious glances every once in awhile, it _wasn't_ because she wished she could be that small and curl up in Inuyasha's lap or something.

Kagome blinked. Slowly turned her head to sneak a glance at the half-demon in question currently lounging against the wall, none the wiser to her predicament, perfectly at ease and probably perfectly warm.

And if the slowly developing smirk on her face was in the least bit devious, well, then she'd heatedly deny it.

Comfortably warm, feeling lethargic and drained from battling the strong wings still gusting outside their niche, Inuyasha was feeling particularly sluggish as he reclined against the wall, legs crossed and wrists resting limply on his knees. Having devoured three cups of ramen, he was comfortably full and just about ready to maybe catch a few z's since they were as safe as they could be right now – he was fairly positive no demons after the Shikon jewel with half a brain would venture out in this storm - and having scoped out their niche earlier for any other threats. Not like he had anything better to do anyway, and not being one for idle chatter, it seemed like the most logical thing to do.

Before he could truly nod off, however, he heard the rustle of Kagome's sleeping bag to his left and his ear swiveled in her direction automatically, not bothering to open his eyes to see what she was up to. The rustling from her bag seemed to be getting louder and a slight frown knitted his brows. What was she doing?

A moment later he had his answer when quite suddenly her sweet scent was right in front of him and then promptly directly under his nose as a warm weight settled in his lap and against his chest. Inuyasha grunted in surprise and stiffened automatically at the intrusion of his personal space as the warmth in his lap wiggled around a bit to get comfortable, and then leaned fully against his chest with a content sigh, her head tucked under his chin, her body still cocooned within the confines of her sleeping bag and now finally warm against her hanyou.

Dumbly Inuyasha stared down at the young woman with a slack-jawed expression, too stunned to even feel embarrassed at her forwardness or to loudly object her very sudden proximity. The longer he stared, though, the more his body relaxed with this new and not so unwelcome development until eventually he slumped back against the wall and accepted her pleasant weight against him. From the way she was huddled up in that bag of hers, Inuyasha suspected he knew the reason for her relocation and so he allowed his wench to absorb his warmth with no complaints, however he did some shifting around of his own to achieve a more comfortable position before settling with another grunt, a sigh, and was silent once more. If he noticed the twin looks of amusement from the two humans across the way as one arm draped around her shoulders, he didn't show it as he closed his eyes and attempted to once again get some rest, Kagome's pleasant weight in his lap a surprisingly comforting presence.

He felt her press her lips above his heart and a low rumble reverberated in his chest in response. Kagome smiled and drifted off to sleep, warm and content.

 **-X-**

The next day proved to be much more summer-like, with sunny skies and warm temperatures, so once the sun broke over the horizon without any signs of dark clouds or strong winds, Inuyasha wasted no time in hustling their little group out into the sunshine, eager to stretch his stiff muscles after being cooped up in the too-small niche all night long, even if it _had_ been with a certain nice smelling wench cuddled against him the entire time.

It was at lunchtime that the unfortunate discovery was made of Kagome's supplies being lower than she had originally thought and as such Inuyasha would either have to make do without his precious instant noodles for the rest of the week or an impromptu visit to Kagome's time was in the very near future. So when he suddenly announced they'd be heading back to Kaede's that day, it didn't come as a surprise at all because as much as Kagome knew that Inuyasha hated backtracking for whatever reason, he hated not having his ramen even more.

And so after partaking in a light lunch of dried meat, fruit, and tea, Kagome climbed onto Inuyasha's back with Shippou clinging to her shoulder, Miroku and Sango hopped astride Kirara and they were off, heading back from whence they came in the direction of Kaede's village and the Bone Eater's Well. With their methods of transportation faster now since they couldn't afford to be leisurely, they made it back by dusk and settled in for some of the old priestess's hot stew and what was left of Kagome's ninja food. It was decided the hanyou and school girl would take the trip tomorrow morning since it was already so late so they were able to take it easy tonight and lounge about.

Kagome took the opportunity to get some studying in since she'd also be taking the advantage of going home tomorrow to go to school and so now she sat in front of the fire with her text in her lap, a bag of chips at her side serving as much needed brain food. Unfortunately, about ten minutes into reading about thePythagorean theorem, her back was really staring to ache from being hunched over her textbook, and even worse, she couldn't scoot back to lean against the wall because she needed the firelight to read.

Squirming around where she sat, a pout on her face that turned into a wince when her stiff back gave a series of uncomfortable cracks, Kagome huffed in irritation and glared at the bag of potato chips to her right, trying to think up a solution. Then a red clad leg suddenly came into view as Inuyasha unceremoniously flopped down beside her with a tongue-curling yawn and Kagome blinked as she lifted her head to regard him silently, her gaze turning contemplative. A minute later a wide smile spread across her face and the half-demon was too preoccupied by shoving some dried potatoes into his mouth to notice.

He was none the wiser to his wench's scheming, busy licking the salt off of his fingers, and he disregarded her shifting around. That is until a minute later Kagome was suddenly leaning against his side with her book propped up on her knees and he released a surprised grunt as automatically he placed a hand behind him to support the added weight. Inuyasha blinked and then frowned down at the head of raven hair resting against his shoulder, about to demand just what she thought she was doing – what, did he looked like a damned leaning post? – but before he could utter a single word there was suddenly a potato chip hovering in front of his mouth held by a dainty hand and Inuyasha faltered, staring dumbly at the offered chip in silence.

Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, the silver-haired half-demon leaned forward slightly to get a glimpse of her face and when he saw the teasing, vaguely mischievous tilt of her lips, he rolled his eyes, gave an exaggerated sigh, then abruptly snatched what he knew to be a bribe from her fingers with his fangs and crunched loudly. Kagome squeaked, then giggled and offered another. Inuyasha growled with no heat and allowed her to feed him single potato chips at random intervals as she studied, indulging in the salty snack herself every once in a while but most of it when to her hanyou backrest. He sure was hell was a lot more comfortable than the wall.

At some point Inuyasha dug around in Kagome's bag for the last bottle of water and took a few hearty gulps before wordlessly and without even thinking dangling it in front of Kagome's face. Kagome made a noise of appreciation, grabbed his wrist and used it to bring the mouth of the bottle to her lips. He snorted in amusement.

This went on for another hour or so, silently exchanging water and chips until the bag was empty, the words in Kagome's text were starting to blur together, and she was struggling to keep her eyes open. That was when, after tossing the empty bag into the fire and abandoning her textbook, Kagome dragged a blanket over her, stretched out on the floor and laid her head on Inuyasha's thigh with a soft sigh, not even stopping to think about what she was doing. To his credit said hanyou only stiffened for about ten seconds before carefully shifting around into a more comfortable position, one leg bent at the knee while the other remained perfectly stationary so as to not disturb the slumbering woman using it as a pillow for the second time.

He didn't really complain, though, because it gave him the opportunity to rake his fingers through her obsidian hair, the gesture putting him at ease as much as it appeared to soothe her. And as he sat there with Kagome resting against him, silently running his fingers through her hair as he gazed sightlessly into the fire, he didn't even care that their friends were staring at him with matching knowing smiles, or that the runt was snickering into his hands, because he cherished these rare moments with Kagome and he wasn't going to let them ruin it.

Sometime later, after everyone else had gone to sleep as well and the fire had burned down to embers, Inuyasha stayed awake and gazed down at the sleeping beauty beside him with soft eyes, unable to resist brushing the backs of his fingers across her smooth cheek. And in the darkness he was easily able to detect the slightest upturn of her mouth and a whisper soft sigh reached his ears.

In the darkness, Inuyasha smiled.

 **-X-**

The next day after an early breakfast, in which Inuyasha studiously avoided his friends' pointed stares and Kagome smiled like an idiot, the duo disembarked for the Bone Eater's Well with just enough time for Kagome to dump her textbooks into the bag she reserved for school, and greet her mother before she hurried back outside and disappeared down the shrine steps.

Resigned to a day without his wench – or at least for seven hours – Inuyasha wandered into the kitchen to see if he could get his second favorite woman to make him some ramen. To his pleasant surprise, there was already a steaming cup waiting for him on the table and he grinned happily before tucking right in. He didn't pause when a glass of milk was set on the table beside him and familiar slim fingers gave his ear a few gentle rubs before Kaori patted his shoulder affectionately then left the kitchen to start her daughter's laundry.

Inuyasha polished off his noodles in short order, downed the obligatory glass of milk, and after tossing the empty cup and putting the glass in the sink, he wandered back outside. It was a custom established early on by the older woman and half-demon as they gradually became comfortable with one another and their developing relationship, one that Inuyasha was comfortable with and even anticipated sometimes. It was nice to have a mother figure in his life; Kaori Higurashi reminded him of his own mother in a lot of ways, and her affectionate little ear rubs always left him with a warm feeling. It was a silent agreement; she'd make him ramen whenever he desired but in exchange, a glass of milk always accompanied it and it was a fair trade, so he never argued or complained. Stroking his ear was a silent "thank you" from the older woman and allowing her always-gentle touch was his way of saying "you're welcome."

Stretching his arms above his head and releasing a wide yawn, Inuyasha thought about tracking down the old geezer and partaking in one of his favorite pastimes of being annoying until the old fart yelled at him to scram but, eyeing the boughs of the Goshinboku, he decided that a light nap sounded more appealing so he meandered on over and bounded onto his favorite branch with practiced ease. While being a half-demon meant he required less sleep than humans, that didn't mean he was immune to fatigue and he _had_ stayed up all night staring at a certain sleeping wench using his thigh as a pillow, and this way the time would go by faster until said wench returned from school.

Putting his hands behind his head, Inuyasha got comfortable and closed his eyes with a sigh.

When next he opened his eyes, Inuyasha was surprised to find the sun low in the sky and he blinked before shaking his head, stretching, and leaping down. He must have been more tired than he realized, but he didn't beat himself up over it. Kagome's time was much safer than his own so there was no need to worry about spontaneous demon attacks, however he was a bit miffed he missed his wench's return. He strode into the house, intent on demanding why she hadn't woken him up when she got home, but he paused in the kitchen doorway upon finding her at the counter wearing a pink apron and stirring something in a bowl. Any irritation he might have had evaporated and in its place was curiosity as he casually treaded up behind her and peeked over her shoulder.

Having sensed him the second he walked into the room, Kagome didn't finch at the half-demon's sudden presence and concentrated on the task at hand, humming in the back of her throat as she brought the spoon up to her mouth and tasted her creation. She cocked her head as she deliberated, licking her lips, tapping the spoon against her chin before promptly deciding she needed a second opinion and dipping the spoon back in the bowl.

Inuyasha leaned back slightly in surprise when Kagome suddenly spun around and held a spoonful of the delicious smelling brown goop before his mouth, holding one hand underneath to catch any stay drops. Automatically he opened his mouth and bemusedly he accepted the offering. He swallowed and licked his lips as the flavor dissolved on his tongue, chocolaty, sweet, and his eyes lit up in pleasure. Wordlessly he grabbed the spoon from Kagome and ladled up another spoonful to shove in his mouth. Kagome giggled, pleased he apparently enjoyed her homemade brownie batter, but she couldn't let him eat it all or there wouldn't be any brownies to be consumed later.

She attempted to take the spoon back from him but he gave a mock growl and indulged in more of the chocolaty goodness. Suppressing a grin, Kagome returned his growl with a faux glare and tried to swipe it again, but was not expecting the half-demon to suddenly dip his finger in the bowl then poke her cheek. Kagome squeaked, Inuyasha laughed, and she retaliated by snatching the batter-covered spoon in his distracted mirth and smearing it over his own cheek.

Inuyasha grunted in surprise, swiped some of the mess off of his cheek with a finger and popped it in his mouth with a noise of approval. Kagome giggled, shook her head, then reached up to clean off the batter on her face but Inuyasha beat her to it, grabbing her wrist and reducing her to a blushing statue when he leaned in and licked it off himself. He smacked his lips, smirked devilishly at her, and too late Kagome realized his successful attempt at distracting her had worked very well because before she could react, he grabbed the spoon, grabbed the bowl, and darted away victoriously with his stolen goods.

Kagome blinked, her mouth dropped in astonishment, and then she abruptly gave chase to the escaping hanyou with an indignant shout. Soon enough her laughter could be heard echoing throughout the grounds amidst his good-natured taunts and from where she stood in the doorway, Kaori Higurashi smiled.

 **-X-**

Hours later, when Kagome's family had retired to bed and all was quiet in the house, Kagome stay awake watching television in the darkness of the living room, huddled on the couch wrapped in a blanket and yawning every few minutes as she struggled to keep her eyes open. A plate of a half a dozen brownies sat on the table in front of her along with empty ramen cups, soda cans, and a glass with about a quarter of milk left in it.

Glancing at the clock again, Kagome heaved another sigh and once more trained her eyes on the TV, realizing that in the time she'd been waiting for Inuyasha to return, the show she'd been watching had turned into a horror film she was only vaguely familiar with. Normally she didn't mind watching a scary movie from time to time, would even consider herself a fan, however she'd never watched one alone before and she found that she really didn't want to _start_ watching them alone. Unfortunately, Inuyasha was still in the Feudal Era, the remote was out of her reach, and she didn't want to move from her cocoon of warmth and coziness so ergo, she was forced to sit there and watch warily as the American actor Jennifer Tilly flirted horribly with Nick Stabile. Thankfully it had about half an hour or so ago so she still had some time left before the real action started.

Kagome huffed and pouted, wrinkling her nose as she glanced at the clock again. Honestly, what was taking him so long? Inuyasha had left about an hour ago, saying he wanted to tell the others the plan for tomorrow, and would be coming right back afterward. So okay, yes, maybe she missed him. A little.

…Okay, a lot.

After their little brownie batter battle, Kagome felt that they had grown closer, their relationship strengthened, and she'd greedily wanted to spend some more time with him – alone – before going to sleep, then once more joining their friends on the other side of the well in the morning. She'd _thought_ he'd wanted the same thing, but if he was taking this long, perhaps her desire was a little more one-sided than she'd thought.

She huffed again and watched petulantly as Tiffany fried in her bathtub, too annoyed to really be taking any of it in. The longer she sat there, however, the more she seemed to get sucked into the plot and by maybe a little past the half-way mark of the movie, where the creepy dolls killed the girl's uncle for the _second_ time – how the hell was he still alive?! - Kagome was really wishing her half-demon was with her so she could at least hide behind his arm during the gross and suspenseful parts.

And finally, about ten minutes later, her saving grace strolled casually into the living room with his arms crossed and Kagome turned wide, frightened eyes toward him before wiggling her arms loose from her nest of blankets and reaching out to him with a little wordless plea falling from her lips.

Inuyasha frowned at her, then directed his gaze toward the moving-picture box and arched a brow as a…doll? repeatedly stabbed a human with what looked to be nails sticking out of his face. The fuck? Was Kagome seriously scared of this shit? He turned his attention back to his wench, and sure enough, he could easily read the fright in her eyes as she silently pleaded for him to join her and rolling his eyes but giving in with a sigh – he could never say no to that face – Inuyasha crossed the room and plopped on the couch next to her. Immediately Kagome crawled into the space between his legs and used his arm to hide her face, only occasionally being brave enough to peek out from behind her half-demon shield.

Despite himself, Inuyasha felt his mouth kick up into a half-smile because he couldn't help but think that his wench was being adorable right now. But really, how could she be scared of this crap? He trained golden eyes on the box and watched dispassionately as a human couple met their demise by way of falling mirror shards. He inwardly snorted. They'd both seen more blood and guts battling demons on his side of the well, so he didn't quite understand how Kagome could really be afraid of two weird dolls of all things going on a killing spree.

…And fucking. Inuyasha's face twisted with disgust and flicked down to the girl practically in his lap. From what little of her face he could see from where it was buried in his arm, he could tell that a dark flush had stolen across her entire face and he withheld a snicker. There would be hell to pay if he poked fun at his wench's embarrassment, so he managed to stifle his amusement with a well-placed cough.

Thankfully the dark-haired girl was too engrossed to take notice anyway, and so Inuyasha relaxed back into the couch, resigned to his responsibility of "protecting" his wench from the moving pictures on the box, and absently slipped an arm around her waist as he shifted around to get more comfortable. Kagome moved with him, and the end result was him stretched out on the sofa with Kagome sprawled on top of him, head on his chest and still using his arm to hide behind. With his other arm behind his head, Inuyasha wasn't inclined to move for about maybe the next year or so and secretly he hoped that Kagome shared that inclination and wouldn't be moving anytime soon to go upstairs to her bedroom. That is, if she didn't fall asleep first; he hadn't failed to miss the intermittent yawns and sleepy blinking of her eyes and it was obvious she was struggling to stay awake to watch the film.

He had do admit, his wench held a firm sense of dedication. It was admirable, but if he was completely honest, wasted on such a piece of shit modern "moo-vee." But whatever; Kagome apparently enjoyed the thrill she derived from it, so he would tolerate it for her benefit. She didn't know, but he would do anything she asked of him, including be a pillow, as she seemed to be favoring as of late. The thing was, though, she didn't _have_ to ask. The past few days, Inuyasha didn't fail to notice that their way of communicating with one another had gotten…stronger. Easier, even. It was strange, and yet curiously familiar, like this was how it was always meant to be between them, how Inuyasha just knew what it was Kagome wanted of him without even saying the words, how he anticipated and acted without even a single utterance. It was easy, comfortable, and he hoped this newfound closeness between them didn't come to an end for a very long time. Like, never.

Amber eyes softened as they gazed at the young woman snuggled up on his chest, so absorbed on what was happening on the television – something violent if he had to guess by what he was hearing – that she didn't even notice his silent perusal. Inuyasha was unable to tear his eyes off of her for the remainder of the film, and just before the ending credits rolled, he was lucky enough to witness the wonderful, heart-clenching sight of his Kagome falling asleep on top of him. He felt as her body slowly lost its tenseness, melting against him and watched as her eyes fluttered rapidly in an attempt to stay open as a long, jaw-cracking yawn rendered her momentarily blind.

Or perhaps, not so momentarily; as it turned out, the yawn was what did her in because her eyes did not open again and Inuyasha knew the second she succumbed because her hand went slack where it'd been fisted in his robe, her heartbeat slowed and her chest rose and fell with the measured, rhythmic breathing of sleep.

And for some stupid reason, Inuyasha got a little choked up and had to swallow hard to get rid of the lump that had suddenly developed in his throat. For the second night in the row, he was able to have the privilege of watching over his beloved wench as she slept on, oblivious to his awestruck stare, but for some reason, this time Inuyasha was finding it difficult to remain awake himself. Before he knew it, yawns were escaping him left and right, his eyelids felt heavy, and the steady beat of Kagome's heart was like a lullaby that was meant only for him.

Inuyasha rumbled deep in his chest and moved his hand to splay across Kagome's back before finally, warm, comfortable, and with the woman he cared about most curled right up against him, he released a contented sigh before closing his eyes and allowing the peaceful throes of slumber to claim him.

He didn't hear the light footsteps that padded into the room a few minutes later to turn off the TV, he didn't feel the affectionate rub of his ear, and he didn't see the knowing and warm look in the pair of kind coffee-colored, smiling eyes that looked so much like her daughter's before leaving to allow the couple to sleep in peace.

 **-X-**

It was just a little before dawn when Kagome was woken up why a tickling sensation on her neck and annoyed that her slumber had been disturbed, she wrinkled her nose, made a soft sound of protest and hunched her shoulder. A low chuckle sounded right next to her ear and the puff of warm breath on her skin made her shudder. The gentle touch came again and this time Kagome growled because she wanted to go back to sleep, dammit. Another laugh burst against her ear and, blessedly, the damn tickling stopped and she was able to slowly sink back toward that wonderful dream she'd been having. Her relief, however, was short-lived and she was once again distracted from her goal when tiny pinpricks danced across the small of her back, dragging her mind into the throes of consciousness, and this time a husky voice in her ear accompanied the sensation.

"Wake up, wench. It'll be light out soon and the others are probably waiting for us." The pinpricks traveled to about midway up her spine before gliding back down and morphing into a caress that elicited goosebumps to erupt on her arms and legs. And, well, whatttaya know, Kagome was all kinds of awake now.

With an inarticulate noise, Kagome hid her blushing face and mumbled something into his chest.

Inuyasha arched a brow and one corner of his lips kicked up into a half-grin. "What? You mean this?" He grazed his claws across the small of her back again and the grin turned into a full out smirk when he heard her breath catch in her throat.

Her shoulders rose and fell in a peevish huff and she muttered into his chest again, wiggling around to try and dislodge his hand. "Dunno what you're talking about, wench. Must be you're imagining things." He punctuated this observation by dipping his hand and sweeping his claws along the sensitive flesh of her side. He was rewarded by a startled squeak and then finally the dark-haired head lying on his chest lifted and he was regarded with narrowed, slightly drowsy and peeved chocolate eyes.

Inuyasha raised both his eyebrows. "Morning."

Kagome glared at him, released a resigned sigh, then pushed herself into a sitting position, ignoring the half-demon's grunt as she settled onto his stomach where she stretched, yawned, and blinked sleepily. Wordlessly Inuyasha sat up himself and threw an arm around her waist before promptly standing up and with her tucked securely under his arm, he casually carted his giggling wench into the kitchen where Kaori was already up and preparing breakfast for the duo.

Fifteen minutes later, with her bag restocked courtesy of her mother and with a piece of toast hanging out of her mouth, the still sluggish Kagome followed Inuyasha to the well house and didn't object when he scooped her up again and jumped five hundred years into the past. She couldn't seem to stop yawning, something her hanyou companion didn't fail to miss, as they headed toward Kaede's home and met up with the other's midway there, who had been on their way to meet them at the well.

Then they were off, and thankfully, for the first half of their journey Inuyasha insisted on covering as much ground as they could which meant Kagome would take it easy riding on his back and getting the rest she apparently still needed. She supposed she brought this on herself; staying up to watch that horror film – she didn't even remember the ending so she must have fallen sleep at some point – probably hadn't been the best idea considering Inuyasha's early bird tendencies, so as a result she'd lost precious hours of sleep. But, dammit, she'd wanted to stay up and wait for her hanyou and then she'd gotten sucked into that movie and then she'd _had_ to stay up and watch it regardless.

She was paying for it now and internally kicking herself over and over again as yet another yawn escaped her mouth. It was after lunch now and the urgency had given way to a leisurely stroll through the countryside, Inuyasha as per usual leading in the front and Kagome was trailing quite a bit behind. Even after her brief catnap on Inuyasha's back, she was still tired and stumbling every few feet because couldn't quite pick her feet up high enough. She just felt drained, sluggish, and _because_ she felt that way, she was annoyed with herself. Tired as she was, she hadn't missed the looks of worry on her friend's faces when they glanced back at her and she knew their slow pace was more or less for her benefit. Which begged the question, why hadn't the usual impatient half-demon of their group demanded they pick it up while he was _young,_ please?

And hoping she hadn't just jinxed herself with that particular thought, Kagome shook her head vigorously to shake the persistent cobwebs form her mind and attempted to speed it up a bit so she was at least walking with Miroku and Sango. She hadn't even made it halfway there when her foot caught a root jutting up from the ground and she stumbled forward as an involuntary cry of frustration fell from her lips. She heard Sango call out in concern and with her eyes closed, she didn't see their fearless leader backtrack toward them, his expression unusually patient.

Kagome gave a shaky sigh and was just about to reassure her friends that she was fine when a familiar warmth suddenly settled over her shoulders and then she was abruptly swept off her feet. Automatically Kagome's arms found the voluminous sleeves of the red garment then reached up to curl around his neck and a defeated sigh whispered past her lips as her head laid on his shoulder. Her half-demon started walking again and she nuzzled his shoulder with an inaudible mumble, feeling guilty but grateful at the same time.

With his sleep deprived wench cradled safely in his arms, Inuyasha brushed past an amused Miroku and Sango, ignored the snickering kitsune perched on the former's shoulder, and continued down the path as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, calm as you please. He took Kagome's nuzzle against his shoulder for what it was and he accepted her silent apology with a soft growl in the back of his throat. She sighed, and Inuyasha couldn't stop the tiny smile that curled his lips upward when she managed to find enough strength to lift her hand and capture his ear, giving a few lazy strokes then dropping it to curl around his neck again.

Gathering her closer against him, his heart near to bursting with affection for this amazing woman, Inuyasha ducked his head and pressed his lips to her temple, her silence speaking to him in ways mere words never could. "You're welcome, Kagome."

Kagome smiled, gave one last contented sigh, and drifted off in the arms of the half-demon she loved.

 **-X-**

I don't know if any of you guessed which horror film they watched, but if you didn't, it was **Bride of Chucky.** I actually don't find that movie scary in the least; I find it hilarious. XD The Child's Play and Chucky series are actually one of my favorite horror movie series and I watch them all the time haha. I chose BOC because it's my favorite out of all of them and I can like recite it by memory so it was the easiest to describe lol.


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